The Observer, January 26, 2007
Volume XXXIX, Issue 14
One Foot Out the Door: Finding effective study places a remedy for final exam cramming
Among the trite New Year's resolutions made a couple weeks ago–lose weight, work out, eat less, save more–comes another one I have been hearing a bit lately: studying sooner. Rather than being stuck into a "I just need a 98.4" on the final to get that A, most students would likely prefer to work harder earlier in the term, then relax toward the end. A notable endeavor, but where it fails is all too predictable–finding a place to study.
KSL Library. Named after the co-founder of Lubrizol, Kelvin Smith Library (KSL) is the obvious choice. In fact, it is too obvious. Here you are likely to encounter a few too many familiar faces that make the prospect of socializing seem more attractive than regression analysis and homework sets.
Nord Hall. An extremely tempting location open 24 hours with access to a computer lab, vending machines and… couches. The problem here–you might stay too long… until the next morning. Next time you to go to Nord, look for the drool marks on the pillows and you'll understand what I'm talking about.
Allen Library. Meant to mimic the Petit Trianon built in Versailles, France, the Allen Library is an ideal place to study… if you can get over the murals and busts of dead people watching you. A more pressing problem is that this library closes by early evening each day leaving a narrow window when most students are still in class.
Then there are the coffee shops…a lot of great things historically have started in them: the London Stock Exchange, Sothbey's international auction house, Christie's and some even argue it's where the idea of the first 17th century Encyclopedia come to fruition. There are a few in the area to mention, beginning with the worst:
Starbucks. The only comment worth bring up here is location—it just happens to be convenient. Otherwise, the coffee is not that good and its logo is a twin-tailed mermaid named after the first mate from the novel Moby-Dick.
Algebra Tea House. Due to its location (Murray Hill between Cornell and Mayfield) just off campus, you can rely on seeing new faces here. In fact, you probably won't recognize most of the drinks either, such as the Libyan tea with roasted peanuts.
Arabica. Best place on campus to study–great coffee, quaint building, open late and free Internet. It is not always the best lighting, but if you leave an ID at the counter, they give you a lamp to take to your table.
If your New Year's commitment to studying sooner still fails, then these last couple suggestions should keep in their merit for the caffeine-sustained, final exam cram.
Ibrahim is a senior Medical Anthropology major who has just returned from a year abroad in London.
